Spring-balance curtain-fixture



(No Model.) v W. N. BUCKLEY.

SPRING BALANCE CURTAIN FIXTURE.

A No. 310,557. Patented Jan. 13,1885.

UNTTEn STATns PATENT @rrrcn.

VILLIAM N. BUCKLEY, OF MERIDEN, CONNECTICUT.

SPRING-=BALANCE CURTAiN FIXTURE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 310,557, dated January 13, 1885.

Application filed April 15, 1.884.

(No model.)

To (LZZ whont it may concern:

Be it known that I, \VILLIAM N. BUOKLEY, residing at Meriden, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Spring-Balance Curtain-Fixtures; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in spring-balance curtain-fixtures, the object be ing to provide improved means for setting the actuatingspring to the required tension and controlling its unwinding when the fixture is dismounted, for assisting the said spring in sustaining the curtain at any desired elevation, and for insuring an invariable and fixed position to the spindle when the fixture is mounted.

Vith these ends in view my invention consists in certain details of construction and combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a broken view in vertical longitudinal section of the roll of a fixture'embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is aview in end elevation of the roll, showing the bracket, the inner portion of which is broken away. Fig. 3 is aview show ing the bracket in inside elevation, and the ratchet-wheel and spindle in section. Fig. 4 is a detached broken plan view of the spindle; and Fig. 5 is a view in outside elevation of the friction-plate, which is broken away to show the means employed for coupling it with the spindle, which is shown in section.

My improved means for setting the actuating-spring to the tension required for balancing the shade and counter-balance, and controlling its unwinding when thefixture is dismounted, comprehends the winding of the spring to a high or excessive tension, and then allowing it to unwind against .and under the control of a frictional resistance of prcde termined power, with which it finally reaches an equilibrium and stops, provision being made for varying the said frictional resistance to enable the spring to be set to balance shades and counter-balances varying in weight. The said means for carrying out the abovedescribed principle of operation consist of a frictioirplate, A, journaled upon the spindle B of the fixture, and provided with an inwardly-projecting flange, C, arranged to have frictional engagement with the end of the roll D thereof, in consequence of which engagement the plate normally rotates with the roll of an eccentric, E, and a gravity-paw], F, for antomatically coupling the plate with the spindle, and of means for'varying the amount of friction developed between the end of the roll and the friction-plate. The said eccentric E is rigidly secured to the spindle, and preferably made integral with a guard, G, having a shoulder, H, which prevents the pawl F, which is loosely mounted upon the eccentric, from undue vibration. When the actuatingspring I unwinds, the spindle is rotated and the pawl forced into engagement with the inner face of the flange C of the friction-plate, which is thus coupled with the spindle. hen, however, the fixture is mounted, the pawl is held out of contact with the said flange by the eccentric, which is arranged to extend above the spindle when the same is engaged with the bracket of the fixture. Provision for invariably insuring such position to the spindle when engaged with the bracket as will cause the eccentric to support the pawl, as described, constitutes one feature of this invention, and will be hereinafter described.

As herein shown,.thc means employed for varying the amount of friction developed by the plate consist of a cap, J, inclosing the end of the roll I), and interiorly threaded, to be engaged with and adjusted upon athreaded collar, K, secured to the roll, and of a diskspring, L,locatedwithinthecap,andinterposed between it and the outer face of the frictionplate, which is forced against the end of the roll with a pressure proportional to the tension of the spring, that being regulated and determined by the cap.

In setting the actuating-spring I by the abovedescribed mechanism, the cap is adj usted an d set for developing between the frictionplate and roll the amount of friction required for controlling the unwinding of the spring and arresting it when it has reached the tension required for balancing the shade and counter-balance to be applied to the fixture. In

other words, the cap is adjusted to develop between the plate and roll a frictional eesistance exactly representing in power the power I thereby, and consequently the friction or efto berepresented in the required or working tension of the spring. The adjustment of the cap for this purpose is determined by experiment upon a fixture equipped with a shade and counter-balance, and as the different grades of fixtures are respectively made and fitted alike experiment upon one fixture of each class will suffice for setting the caps of all fixtures of such class. After the cap has been set the spring is wound to a high or excessive tension through the agency of the spindle, which, being released, is immediately actuated in reverse rotation by the unwinding of the spring. During the first rotation of the spindle, and ordinarily during the first part of such rotation, the eccentric mounted upon it will force the pawl into engagement with the flange of the friction-plate, and thus cause the same to rotate with the spindle and against the end of the roll, which is itself prevented from "rotating. The friction thus developed will control the unwinding of the spring and finally stop it when its tension has beeureduced to an equilibrium with the friction. As the cap was set to develop an amount of friction equal in power to the power to be represented by the required tension of the spring, it is apparent that when the spring reaches an equilibrium with the resistance it will have the tension required for balancing the shade and counter balance. It is to be noted in this connection that the cap is suffered to remain undisturbed,

after the setting of the spring, wherefore the resistance issustained and the spring locked against unwinding so long as the fixture remains unmounted. \Vhen the fixture is mou ntcd and the shade operated, the pawl will fall by gravity to the position in which it is shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings, and thereafter the plate will rotate with the roll. \Vhen, however, the fixture is dismounted and the spindle disengaged from the bracket, the further unwinding of the spring to any extent will be prevented by the almost immediate recoupling of the plate with the spindle.

My improved means for assisting the actuating-spring in sustaining the shade at any desired elevation comprehends the application of a frictional resistance for the purpose. The said means consist of a friction disk, M, journaled upon the spindle and interposed between the disk-springL and a fibrous washer, N, resting against the outer face of the frictionplate A, of a ratehet-wheel, O, preferably,and as herein shown, 'made integral with the frietion-disk, and projecting through an aperture, I, formed in the cap J, as shown, and of a gravity-pawl, Q, hung upon the inner face of the bracket R by a pivot, S, and supported,

when not engaged with theratchet-wheel, by a stud, T, projecting from the inner face of the bracket.

By virtue of the described construction and arrangement of parts the friction-disk is 'affected by the tension of the disk-spring to the same extent that the friction-plate is affected .was left.

between the plate and roll, and hence to thetension of the actuating-spring, which, as above described, harmonizes in tension with the friction between the said plate and roll. \Vhen the shade is being drawn down, or when it is at rest, the ratchet-wheel, and hence the friction-disk, will be prevented from rotating by the pawl, wherefore the friction-plate and the roll, with which the plate normally rotates, must rotate against the friction developed between the latter and the disk, and when the force drawing the shade down is removed this same resistance assists the actuatingspring in sustaining the shade and counterbalance at the elevation where the former This avoids the running down of the shades of this class of fixtures, due to the variation in the tension of the actuating-spring at different elevations of the shade. \Vhen the shade is raisedfor winding, the friction is relieved by the rotation of the friction-disk with the friction-plate.

My improved construction for insuring invariably the same position to the spindle when engaged with the bracket, and for preventing it from beinglongitudinally displaced, consists in forming vertical slots U and V, respectively of unequal depth, in opposite faces of and within theend of the spindle, and in providing the bracket with shoulders W and Y, conforming in depth to the slots' aforesaid, located upon opposite sides of the vertical slot Z of the bracket, which slot receives the neck A of the spindle, and formed by reeessing the outer face of the bracket, as

at B and G, as shown. In virtue of this construction, the spindle can be entered into the slot in the bracket in one position only, and this the position in which the deep and shallow slots and shoulders coincide. The eccentric E, for which this provision of always entering the spindle into the bracket in the same position is designed, is conformed to the positiouof the slots, or vice versa. The location of the slots within the end of the spindle causes the same to be locked against longitudinal displacement in the bracket, whereby disengagement between the ratchet-wheel and pawl is prevented.

It is apparent that the frietion-plate may be arranged to engage with the inner or outer face of the roll, instead of with the end thereof, as shown, and also that other means than those herein shown may be employed for Vabroadly claim friction devices for controlling the unwinding of the actuating-spring of a spring curtain-fixture, such a claim having been embodied in a separate application filed by me on or about the 5th day of April, A. D. 1882, No. 57,370.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a spring-balance curtain-fixture, a friction device frietionally coupled with the roll, and an eccentric and pawl for automatically coupling the said device with the spin dle when the same is free to rotate, substantially as set forth.

2. In a spring-balance curtain-fixture, a friction device frictionally coupled with the roll, means for automatically coupling the said device with the spindle when the latter is free to rotate, a threaded cap fitting over the end of the roll and engaging with a collar secured thereto, and a spring interposed between the cap and the friction device, sub stantially as set forth. s

3. In a spring-balance curtain-fixture, a

friction device frictioually coupled with the roll, and means for automatically coupling the said friction device with the spindle when the latter is free to rotate, in combination with a friction device for assisting the actuating' spring in sustaining the shade at any desired elevation, substantially as set forth.

'4. In a springbalance curtain fixture, a

friction-plate journaled upon the spindle and frictionally coupled with the roll, means for automatically coupling the said plate with the spindle when the latter is free to rotate, a friction-disk journaled upon the spindle and rotating with the fricti0n-plate when the shade is winding, and means for sustaining the disk in a fixed position with respect to the plate when the shade is unwinding or at rest, substantially as set forth.

5. In a spring-balance curtain-fixture, a combined friction-disk and ratchet-wheel, a .cap fitting over the end of the roll and provided with an aperture through which the ratchet-wheel projects, and a pawl located upon theinner face of the bracket of thefixture and engaging with the ratchet-wheel, for preventing the disk from rotating while the shade is unwinding or at rest, substantially as set forth.

6. In a spring curtain-fixture, aspindle hav ing slots of unequal depth formed in its opposite faces and within its end, and a bracket provided with shoulders conforming to the slots in the spindle, substantially as set forth.

I11 testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscrib- 60 ing witnesses.

WILLIAM N. BUOKLEY. 

